DPT students learn to handle cultural differences during overseas rotations

by Chuck Gordon

Students in Wingate's Doctor of Physical Therapy program are getting a unique opportunity to see how rehabilitative care is handled outside of the United States.

Two third-year WU DPT students - Jonathan Sunghoo Kim and Nola Grace Brown - are spending 10 weeks in Milan, Italy, this summer, on a clinical rotation, where they will see how a national public health service handles physical therapy. In September, a pair of WU DPT students will complete a four-week clinical rotation in the Central American country of Belize.

This is the first year that Wingate DPT is sending students abroad for clinical rotations.

Dr. Karen Friel, director of Wingate's DPT program, says that increased cultural awareness will make the participating students more well-rounded physical therapists. The overseas rotations will require them to overcome cultural and language barriers that could also be present when they take full-time jobs in the United States after graduating this December.

"People are different in different countries," Friel says, "so it helps the students to learn to tailor their rehab services toward individuals, rather than using a one-stop-shop approach to everybody."

Brown agrees. Although the Raleigh native studied abroad as an undergraduate at Meredith College, she's not fluent in Italian and has had to rely on all five senses to fully treat her patients in Milan.

"It is in my nature to step in to help at any moment I can," she says. "This is far more difficult in unfamiliar territory, so I have been really challenged to exercise my ability to read body language and tone and to pick up on cues and routines far faster than ever before."

Kim, who earned his undergraduate degree at Georgia State University, called the Italian rotation a "once-in-a-lifetime experience" that is opening his eyes to how a nationalized health service handles physical therapy.

"Healthcare is a basic human right," he says. "I've believed in this. However, to see it in action with universal healthcare is amazing."

Kim and Brown are concentrating on hand and wrist care during their rotation, which will fulfill one of their four required clinical rotations (equaling 38 weeks, six more than the national average). Working at San Guiseppe Ospedale, a hospital in central Milan, they're getting experience treating injuries and conditions such as trigger finger, Dupuytren's contractures, and fractures, plus a variety of both common and rare genetic conditions. They're seeing patients of all ages, including infants.

Kim says that, at San Guiseppe, the surgeons often consult on their patients' therapies. He says it's been instructive to see how well the surgeons and therapists collaborate.

"The respect and trust instilled in each therapist is amazing to see," he says.

Kim has also learned how to get past the language differences.

"The differences in languages make the rotation difficult," he says. "However, my clinical instructors are amazing at translating and keeping me involved in patient conversations and explaining pathologies/treatments."

Students doing a rotation in Belize will encounter more than just a language barrier.

"There are certain social determinants of health that are going to be different in the U.S. than in southern Belize, where there are deficiencies in diet and deficiencies in exercise, among other things," Friel says. "What affects those people is going to be different from what they might see in a U.S.-based system."

The students will be working at a clinic in Eldridgeville, just outside Punta Gorda in southern Belize. Before signing on to send students to the clinic, Wingate faculty members made a reconnaissance trip to make sure it was suitable for them. They wanted to know how safe the area was and whether the infrastructure was robust enough to ensure that the students would have a good experience.

"We were really pleased with what we saw," Friel says. "We are continuing that partnership in other ways with the clinic down there, including doing fundraising."

Friel says she hopes to offer the Italy and Belize rotations annually. Also, Wingate DPT is currently in discussions to add a third country to the clinical-rotation options.

Learn more about Wingate's DPT program.

July 2, 2024

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